Ben Arfa verdict delayed by LFP

The saga involving Hatem Ben Arfa's move to Nice continued on Tuesday as the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) stayed proceedings following a Legal Committee meeting.

Ben Arfa moved to Ligue 1 club after leaving Newcastle United earlier this month but has yet to make his debut due to a disagreement over how many teams he has played for this season.

The forward featured on loan for Hull City as well as Newcastle Under-21s, but has been unable to make his debut for Nice due to a FIFA regulations that state a player can only appear for two teams in a season.

Nice and the English Football Association have both argued that the Under-21 game should not be classed as an official game, but FIFA stated in a "purely informative" letter that it felt otherwise.

The decision rests in the hands of the LFP's Legal Committee but, following Tuesday's meeting, the organisation remain keen for FIFA to clarify its official position before reaching a verdict.

"No decision today regarding the approval of the contract of Hatem Ben Arfa. The French international, who stayed in Nice training with his team-mates ahead of the derby [with Marseille on Friday], remains in limbo," read a statement from the club.

"After Tuesday morning's hearing with Julien Fournier (CEO of Nice) and Jean-Jacques Bertrand (representative of the player), the Legal Committee of the LFP has decided to stay proceedings.

"The league now wishes that the international federation expresses an official position before making its decision."

The LFP has now asked the French football's governing body to approach FIFA's Player Status Committee in the hope of agreeing a verdict.

Ben Arfa has endured a miserable season to date, having been frozen out under Alan Pardew at Newcastle before struggling to force his way into Steve Bruce's plans at Hull.

He now faces a further wait to try and kick-start his career again at Nice with the 27-year-old questioning reporters at the weekend: "Do you find it normal that this situation is trying to stop me from doing my job?"